First, I have spent a lot of time in MO1 for the past several years (not as veteran as many of you for sure, though), and loved the game.. with it's quirks and changes over the years. I still log in and play.. but it feels like a single player game these days with almost no one on (sad times).
I have been playing MO2 now for about a week.. exploring, trying some crafting and the new combat system. Overall, I love the new visuals and expanded world. I was worried it would just feel like another Sarducca.. spread out without any density, but I think the new map feels much more realistic. One big criticism I have so far is I feel like MO2 is reducing the overall learning curve from the game (easy parries, simplified armor pieces, resource gathering, etc), and I think that is a big mistake. One caveat; some of the items I call out might be in a state of flux as MO2 is developed...
Combat:
The new combat system is growing on me.. it does feel more organic and realistic slowed down. However, I still feel it is slowed down a bit too much. Increasing run speed a bit may help, or even better Grasthard's parry mechanic suggestion. MO1's combat system was fast (I started playing when Awakening was released, so I don't have a good base prior to that), but it made sense to be fast.. dealing with vastly different species with very different bonuses. I do like the new system (minus easy parry mode), but would like it sped up just a bit.
Ranged Combat:
While the melee combat system is feeling more realistic for the most part, the ranged combat just doesn't feel right. A lot of my time on MO1 was as an MA, and the way a bow pulled, and the path an arrow took made sense to me (except for the lack of taking speed into account, i.e. lack of needing to lead your target). The MO2 bows just don't feel right. They pull pretty linearly, and the arrows seem to shoot straight every time. Also.. the bows all seem to respond like a short bow, no matter if it is an asymmetric recurve, longbow, or shotbow. The work bench isn't opened up yet, so maybe when I start crafting some bows things will feel better.
Armor:
I am really hating the new armor slots. I liked having the ability to customize with 10 slots. The MO1 armor slots were not difficult to figure out when I was a new player (and I never heard that complaint), but did provide the ability to really tailor your armor for your play style as you learned how armor worked in the game, even without crafting your own armor. It allowed customization (visually and through game mechanics) without demanding the steep learning curve that is present in much of the game. The learning curve was there if you wanted to learn how to best customize your pieces for heat, mounteds, etc, but it was not a requirement outside of that.
Map:
I really like the expanded map.. especially if MO2 ends up supporting an online community larger than MO1 at it's peak. It feels more natural to look down at a town and see it nestled nicely in a valley without filling it. Though.. travelling around the world without a mount is killing me
Resource Gathering:
I am really hating the tooltips telling me what every resource is. I really enjoyed needing to pay attention to what different trees looked like in MO1, or what different rocks looked like. The tooltips are a minor complaint of mine, but they do detract from the immersion. I can see new players not even paying attention to the visual detail put into different types of resources and relying purely on the tooltips.
New Player Experience:
I feel like much of the changes put in are purely to reduce the learning curve of the game. I think that is a mistake. The deep realism MO1 had that demanded a steep learning curve also added to the game. There is a big difference between teaching new players about the different game mechanics with good tutorials, and dumbing the game down. I feel like many of the players that gave MO1 a try and then left because of the new player experience would agree that they want a complex game. Many specifically were giving MO1 a try instead of other games like WoW, because they wanted that complexity. The new player experience in MO1 sucked, and unless you made some knowledgeable friends in the game (or lived on the forums), you were totally lost. Haven was a step in the right direction, but was still missing what new players needed. If you take Haven, add quests that teach you the basics to the game with some PVE content, then I think new players would be ready to deal with the complexity (and would love it). Haven seemed to be a start for this, but really just didn't do enough for a new player. I imagine a new player experience where a combat tutor will explain the basics of parrying and show you through combat with some pointers. I really feel that had Haven been implemented a year earlier, the player base would have lasted longer with new players sticking around. Tindrem was the go-to starting point for most new players, and was just a caustic environment that made new players feel like that was the entirety of the game. If much of the goal around MO2 is to increase the player base and attract new players, you need to address what really drove people away, and I do not feel the complexity was it.
I have been playing MO2 now for about a week.. exploring, trying some crafting and the new combat system. Overall, I love the new visuals and expanded world. I was worried it would just feel like another Sarducca.. spread out without any density, but I think the new map feels much more realistic. One big criticism I have so far is I feel like MO2 is reducing the overall learning curve from the game (easy parries, simplified armor pieces, resource gathering, etc), and I think that is a big mistake. One caveat; some of the items I call out might be in a state of flux as MO2 is developed...
Combat:
The new combat system is growing on me.. it does feel more organic and realistic slowed down. However, I still feel it is slowed down a bit too much. Increasing run speed a bit may help, or even better Grasthard's parry mechanic suggestion. MO1's combat system was fast (I started playing when Awakening was released, so I don't have a good base prior to that), but it made sense to be fast.. dealing with vastly different species with very different bonuses. I do like the new system (minus easy parry mode), but would like it sped up just a bit.
Ranged Combat:
While the melee combat system is feeling more realistic for the most part, the ranged combat just doesn't feel right. A lot of my time on MO1 was as an MA, and the way a bow pulled, and the path an arrow took made sense to me (except for the lack of taking speed into account, i.e. lack of needing to lead your target). The MO2 bows just don't feel right. They pull pretty linearly, and the arrows seem to shoot straight every time. Also.. the bows all seem to respond like a short bow, no matter if it is an asymmetric recurve, longbow, or shotbow. The work bench isn't opened up yet, so maybe when I start crafting some bows things will feel better.
Armor:
I am really hating the new armor slots. I liked having the ability to customize with 10 slots. The MO1 armor slots were not difficult to figure out when I was a new player (and I never heard that complaint), but did provide the ability to really tailor your armor for your play style as you learned how armor worked in the game, even without crafting your own armor. It allowed customization (visually and through game mechanics) without demanding the steep learning curve that is present in much of the game. The learning curve was there if you wanted to learn how to best customize your pieces for heat, mounteds, etc, but it was not a requirement outside of that.
Map:
I really like the expanded map.. especially if MO2 ends up supporting an online community larger than MO1 at it's peak. It feels more natural to look down at a town and see it nestled nicely in a valley without filling it. Though.. travelling around the world without a mount is killing me
Resource Gathering:
I am really hating the tooltips telling me what every resource is. I really enjoyed needing to pay attention to what different trees looked like in MO1, or what different rocks looked like. The tooltips are a minor complaint of mine, but they do detract from the immersion. I can see new players not even paying attention to the visual detail put into different types of resources and relying purely on the tooltips.
New Player Experience:
I feel like much of the changes put in are purely to reduce the learning curve of the game. I think that is a mistake. The deep realism MO1 had that demanded a steep learning curve also added to the game. There is a big difference between teaching new players about the different game mechanics with good tutorials, and dumbing the game down. I feel like many of the players that gave MO1 a try and then left because of the new player experience would agree that they want a complex game. Many specifically were giving MO1 a try instead of other games like WoW, because they wanted that complexity. The new player experience in MO1 sucked, and unless you made some knowledgeable friends in the game (or lived on the forums), you were totally lost. Haven was a step in the right direction, but was still missing what new players needed. If you take Haven, add quests that teach you the basics to the game with some PVE content, then I think new players would be ready to deal with the complexity (and would love it). Haven seemed to be a start for this, but really just didn't do enough for a new player. I imagine a new player experience where a combat tutor will explain the basics of parrying and show you through combat with some pointers. I really feel that had Haven been implemented a year earlier, the player base would have lasted longer with new players sticking around. Tindrem was the go-to starting point for most new players, and was just a caustic environment that made new players feel like that was the entirety of the game. If much of the goal around MO2 is to increase the player base and attract new players, you need to address what really drove people away, and I do not feel the complexity was it.
